I am a huge fan of Nat King Cole...and while I apologize that you cannot see him passionately singing this beautiful Carol...maybe you can close your eyes and feel not only the warm of the fake fire but the warmth of Nat's amazing voice.
The first version is another variation on the word, "Come"...a beckoning for us to bring our whole selves. Here are the words:
O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem!
Come, and behold Him, born the King of angels!
Refrain:
O come, let us adore Him;
O come, let us adore Him;
O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord!
Adore, like the word, "Love", might be weakened by its overuse in our world today. We say, "We adore those shoes...or coat...car...or whatever." We are trying to say we really, really like it. But I wonder if we are missing something with such use in our everyday lives. Adore means, 'to love and respect.' So, I do adore my wife, my kids, my family, people in my church...but what commercials are trying to tell us at this time of year is that somehow we can buy that adoration on Christmas morning with a piece of jewelry or Lexus with a big red bow in our driveway. I am not sure where the person was keeping that car until Christmas morning or who exactly buys a car for Christmas? Not exactly my experience! But adoration...like love and respect as the Beatles and Aretha Franklin respectively taught us...cannot be purchased and don't come pre-packaged ~ as though those qualities are manufactured somewhere else. Adoration - love and respect - are made in our lives...in our words and daily actions.
We are heading to Bethlehem for adoration...which brings up the second meaning of this word...'to worship or to venerate.' This kind of prayer posture...we bring our love and respect to a vulnerable baby because this is God's love and respect for us in flesh, breath, and bone. What is evoked with Emmanuel is what love and respect and worship looks like, smells like, and feels like. An adoration that is honest and open and uncontrollable. This is why I so love the passion of Nat King Cole's voice, I not only want to listen - but sing along. Which is really the whole point of this Carol...not to just sit back and be entertained, but to enter the fray and be part of the joyful worship of the One who beckons all of us to come to Bethlehem so that our soul might feel its worthy and sing out joyfully.
Prayer: As we come, inch closer, O God...come near to keep us moving faithfully forward. Let each step toward the straw be filled with love, respect, and worship. Amen.
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